darling, this place is a lovely oasis [forward dated to Thursday]

[honeyedtea]

[ It doesn't seem right to call for a party this week, not with this new incentive hanging over their heads and ticking ever closer to its deadline. Mielle's been trying not to think about it but she knows she's in the minority, compared to those who've been spending their hours doing nothing but sit around the meeting room. It feels like the fragile sense of stability they've managed to establish is going to come splintering apart and that frightens her. She'd talked about arranging something like this last week with Gaius, but... now seems like a good time to actually make it a reality.

At some point during the prior day, everyone will have gotten an invitation from Mielle – either in person or through notes left at their suites – to come by the restaurant around noon the next day for a little gathering. There'll be food and also a bit of a surprise that she'd like everyone to come and see.

Anyone who drops by at the time indicated will find that Mielle has set up a tea party in the restaurant. She's done what she can to wrangle finger foods and sweets and enough tea for everyone from the menu and there's a few tables set up for people to sit around chatting over tea and food.

There's also another table set up not with food, but handicraft supplies. There's beginner embroidery sets and more than enough supplies for everyone as well as some supplies and paper for flower pressing, if you're into that.

Mielle's hovering around, trying to look more like a confident hostess and less like a nervous wreck but with this week being what it is, she thinks they won't mind her slipping etiquette. ]

I'm not quite sure how typical this is elsewhere, but... in my own world, young ladies will come to gatherings like this to socialize and display their skill at these sorts of crafts. I know nothing can change the situation we're in but... I'd hoped that a gathering like this might lift our spirits, or at least take our minds off of things.

[ It's certainly not as formal as Jonathan's meeting from last week. But there's something earnest about it all the same.

Mielle will be attending, of course, and while she's here to socialize, she'll also be happy to help anyone who wants to learn handicrafts with getting started – she'll be surprised if any of the guys show an interest but she'll help all the same. Otherwise, feel free to mingle around and try not to think about the rapidly approaching motive deadline. ]

Comments

[honeyedtea]

How young?

[ That's clearly not a question she was expecting to get, so she takes a moment to think over it before responding. ]

I suppose it's more typical for girls around my age when we've yet to have our coming our age ceremonies or prior to marriage. But there's no hard rule about it that I know of... so ladies of all ages are free to enjoy it.

[bootyhunter]

[With every new interaction, Dandy's "forever alone" status is being not-so-suggestively thrust in his face.]

Puuuuuh-lease tell me there's a couple of years between this coming out ceremony [NO!!!!!!!] and gettin' hitched.

[Now, while most well-adjusted adults would be uncomfortable for morality-related reasons, Dandy is most concerned because somehow, it makes him feel behind in some way.]

cw for period appropriate underage marriage, arranged engagements, all that shit

[honeyedtea]

Oh, certainly. It wouldn't be proper for a young lady to formally enter that sort of relationship before she's properly come of age.

[ Because of course it being 'proper' is the issue here. ]

But it's quite common for girls to be paired with their future partner at quite a young age, even if we have to wait for a formal engagement ceremony.

[bootyhunter]

"Paired?" That doesn't sound like you've got any say in it.

[Propriety has never mattered much to Dandy. Not as much as authenticity, anyway. He's open about his own carnal frivolities, but what really upsets him regarding Mielle's words is all doors that close when one makes such a permanent decision.

What a tragedy, to dash your hopes of finding love.]

So you're plannin' on spending your whole lives with these dudes and you can't even pick who it's gonna be? What if you hate the guy! What if you hate him so much you wanna grind your heel over his pinky toe at the wedding?

You're still gonna shut up, sit down, and cut into the cake?

Damn! That's one of the saddest stories I've ever heard.

continued cw as above

[honeyedtea]

[ At first, Mielle just blinks at him. His indignation makes no sense - it's like protesting the colour of the sky or gravity. It's just the way the world works. So her answer is a tentative and confused: ] ... Of course?

[ As if it isn't even a question in her mind. ]

It would be wonderful to have a marriage with love, of course, but that's quite the luxury. A partnership that's beneficial to both families is rare enough on its own and there aren't many girls lucky enough to have been settled with one as young as I was.

[bootyhunter]

[Dandy is befuddled entirely by all of that, his waggly eyebrows going this way and that as he works a few things out in his head.]

Yeah, well... 'Kay?

But the love between two people... Or, hell, if you wanna throw a few more romantic rump-pum-pums into the mix, do your thing. True love's just about the best thing there is! It doesn't matter if it's short, or if it don't last forever...

It's, like, one of the top ten reasons to be alive, baby!

[claire, i'm going to regret typing this, i am rolling my eyes into the back of my head bc of the Reaction i am anticipating...]

You'd really be willin' to give up all of that just to make some crummy old people happy?

[honeyedtea]

[ He really is stuck on this, isn't he? Are arranged marriages really so unusual where he comes from that it's something worth objecting to? Or– no, it's a marriage without love he can't wrap his head around, it seems.

How strange. It's odd to feel like the more self-assured – more informed – one in a conversation with a man, let alone a man Dandy's age. ]

Well, of course. [ Said in an upsettingly matter of fact tone. ] As I said, a marriage with love would be preferable, but it certainly isn't common. In many cases, I think it's much smarter to be content with a man who will be kind to you and who has a respectable standing than it would be to hold out in hopes of an appropriate partner coming along that you could also fall in love with. It simply doesn't happen.

[ ... of course, she says that, but Aria had gotten lucky in that regard. Hadn't she?

Aria's blessed with fortune in every regard, so it seems. ]

[bootyhunter]

[It simply doesn't happen.

Falling in love.

Dandy winces at that statement. It pierces through the veneer of his own idiocy, touching something somewhere deep. He doesn't put it together right away, having lived one so many lives and possessing the power to travel to each and every different one of them... But it's strange, isn't it? For someone with the ability to go anywhere and be anyone and do anything at all...

To be so unlucky when it comes to the one of the things he yearns for most. Back home, his head is so burdened by cosmic interference, moving on from these moments of doubt is easy.

And yet, in this place, he's constantly overwhelmed by so many all at once.]

But you're just a baby!

[His incessant need to keep moving, to run away from any and all responsibility, is certainly a toxic trait. Dandy is a far cry from a perfect man, a far cry from a perfect anything really, but he has such a deep affection for every living thing when he allows himself to feel, and so Mielle's plight makes him immensely unhappy. She is trapped within a loveless, restrictive system, without any opportunity to enjoy the real gifts that come with being alive, or so he thinks.]

...Baby.

[He doesn't speak on it further, but the look in his eyes is obvious- They are filled to the brim with pity.]

Well, anyways. Thanks for settin' up this doily-makin' shindig.

It's nice of ya to be thinkin' of other peeps when you're havin' a hard time of your own.

[he means that first freakout when the mayor revealed himself lmfao]

[honeyedtea]

[ Mielle... bristles a bit. It's an unusual sight – she's been so calm and composed during their time here it might not be immediately obvious that she's let some of her annoyance slip through. She's still smiling, like she always is, but there's something a little frosty about it now. ]

While it's true I've yet to have my coming of age ceremony, I'm hardly an infant. I'm certainly old enough to be considering my future and the people who might be in it.

[ A whole lot of good that had done for her. She looks out among the crowd of people in the room, bustling among themselves and wills herself to find some comfort in their presence. Her smile doesn't defrost, but there's a bit less of a chill to her tone when she continues. ]

And besides that... if I'm to represent House Roscent while I'm here, then I should be striving to put my best foot forward in all matters.

[bootyhunter]

[Dandy does catch the tail-end of that cold spell! He's dim-witted when it comes to many a subject, including spelling and mathematical calculations, but his intuition regarding the palpable subtlety of human emotion is oddly sharp. Surprisingly, even though he picks up on it, none of her consternation bothers him in the least.

He cocks his head to the side, tilting his chin forward. He's doing his best to keep his expression friendly and upbeat in hopes of... Not seeming like he's patronizing her?! But alas, will he be successful???]

Sorry! You're younger than me.

That's all I mean. You're doin' a great job, though, uh-

[He almost says "kiddo," thankfully catching himself last minute-]

Mimi, was it?

[BRUH!!!! he had us in the first half ngl]

Things work pretty differently in outer space! Well, 'cause there's so damn much of it- If you're floatin' on your own little slice of Heaven, you get to make your own rules.

[Which is exactly how he prefers to live.]

In my day girls have got a lot more time to think about the future. So, ah! Pardon me.